19th Century Public Health Campaigners (AQA GCSE History)

How important were public health reformers to changing public health in Britain? - Timeline & Summary

Public health reformers were extremely important in improving public health in Britain during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Edwin Chadwick’s 1842 report showed the link between poor living conditions, bad hygiene, and disease. Joseph Bazalgette also played a vital role by designing London’s sewer system in the 1860s, which dramatically reduced cholera outbreaks. The reports of Booth and Rowntree provided statistical evidence that health in Britain remained an issue after the Public Health Acts

Other factors also contributed to improvements in public health. The Boer War (1899–1902) revealed that many British men were too unhealthy to fight, shocking the government into taking action. Advances in science, such as the acceptance of Germ Theory, encouraged better hygiene and sanitation. The government also became more involved, introducing the Public Health Acts. Together, reformers and these other influences pushed Britain toward a healthier and more modern society.

Edwin Chadwick

• Edwin Chadwick wrote a report in 1842 called Report on the Sanitary Conditions of the Labouring Classes

  • Chadwick proved a connection between life expectancy and living standards

  • People living in cities died much younger than those living in the countryside

• Chadwick:

  • concluded this was due to the filthy conditions of cities

  • campaigned for the government to make local authorities clean up their towns and cities

  • advised setting up boards of health that were responsible for clearing sewage

• However, Chadwick incorrectly believed in miasma

• The government did not believe differences in life expectancy were enough evidence to act on

Joseph Bazelgette

• London experienced The Great Stink in the summer of 1858

  • The Thames smelt so badly of raw sewage that the government insisted on action

• The government employed Bazalgette to redesign London’s sewage system

  • By 1865, 1,300 miles of sewers were built and the sewers connected most of London by 1866

• Bazalgette's sewer system had significant consequences on public health

  • London did not experience any more widespread cholera or typhoid outbreaks

  • Sanitation improved across the city